page_title: Cryotherapy
section_title: Whole body cryotherapy
hierarchical_section_title: Cryotherapy / Whole body cryotherapy
caption_attribution_description: English: Cryo-Therapy Chamber during entry of patients, in Bad Bleiberg, Austria
context_page_description: Cryotherapy, sometimes known as cold therapy, is the local or general use of low temperatures in medical therapy. Cryotherapy may be used to treat a variety of tissue lesions. The most prominent use of the term refers to the surgical treatment, specifically known as cryosurgery or cryoablation. Cryosurgery is the application of extremely low temperatures to destroy abnormal or diseased tissue and is used most commonly to treat skin conditions.
  Cryotherapy is used in an effort to relieve muscle pain, sprains and swelling after soft tissue damage or surgery. It can be a range of treatments from the application of ice packs or immersion in ice baths, to the use of cold chambers.
  While cryotherapy is widely used, there is little evidence as to its efficacy that has been replicated or shown in large controlled studies. Its long term side effects have also not been studied.
context_section_description: It is unclear if whole body cryotherapy (WBC) has any effect on muscle soreness, or improves recovery, after exercise. There is no evidence that whole body cooling effectively treats Alzheimer’s, fibromyalgia, migraines, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, stress, anxiety, or chronic pain as its proponents claim.
  This treatment involves exposing individuals to extremely cold dry air (below −100 °C) for two to four minutes. To achieve the subzero temperatures required for WBC, two methods are typically used: liquid nitrogen and refrigerated cold air. During these exposures, individuals wear minimal clothing, which usually consists of shorts for males, and shorts and a crop top for females. Gloves, a woollen headband covering the ears, and a nose and mouth mask, in addition to dry shoes and socks, are commonly worn to reduce the risk of cold-related injury. The first WBC chamber was built in Japan in the late 1970s, introduced to Europe in the 1980s, and has been used in the US and Australia in the past decade.
caption: Cryotherapy patients during preparation of treatment of c. 3 minutes
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